Mickalene Thomas

• Contemporary African American artist.• Lives and works in New York

• Answer the questions about her work on the Michalene Thomas worksheet.

•Mickalene Thomas is an African American artist that specializes in portraits of black women.

1. What does Mackalene Thomas specialize in?2. Describe the painting on this slide in a

sentence.

• In her paintings she is trying to show how black women are beautiful portraying them as beautiful people, not sexual objects.

3. In this picture, how is Mackalene showing that his woman is beautiful without making her sexual?

4. How would she have to change this picture to make it about sex? (Without actually including sex)

• She includes bright patterns in her painting influenced by how people decorated their homes in the 70’s to show the womens creative side and show you who they are as people

5. Why does Mackalene show the bright patterns in her work?

6. How do you decorate your room? What does it express about you? (Example, I have posters of my favorite musicians on the wall, to express what I like)

7. How does your family decorate where you live? What does it express about them?

• She poses the women in non sexual poses. She wants them to be beautiful but without objectifying them.

8. What does objectification mean?9. What is the opposite of objectification?

• She is inspired by her mother, who was a fashion model herself. Many of Mickalenes portraits are of her mother.